


just like the stories say

by thewayofthetrashcompactor (BriarLily)



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Dragon Kylo Ren, Dragons, F/M, Humor, Knights - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-14
Updated: 2020-03-14
Packaged: 2021-02-28 18:35:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,012
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23141800
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BriarLily/pseuds/thewayofthetrashcompactor
Summary: Kylo never considered what it might be like to be a dragon before he became one, but he doesn't think he would have expected the boredom. Thankfully, a dragon can rely on a knight to come along and threaten them every once in a while.
Relationships: Kylo Ren/Rey, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 12
Kudos: 110
Collections: Reylo Theme Event





	just like the stories say

Kylo didn’t know much about being a dragon. One moment, he’d been about to cut Snoke down where he stood. The next, his body had stretched and expanded around him, and he’d fallen to the ground in a heap of scales and wings. Snoke had attempted to control him, but apparently dragons gained a low level of magical resistance, something Kylo didn’t realize he’d been missing until his mind had been clear for the first time in years. He’d burnt his old master to ashes, then burst out of his castle, struggling through the air on his new wings.

He’d done some of the burning and pillaging he’d heard dragons did in the stories, though more out of confusion and frustration than any real purpose. Becoming a dragon didn’t allow for much of an adjustment period, not when opening his mouth to speak was more likely to produce fire than words. At least he was already used to people running for their weapons when he approached. 

Once the initial rage had subsided, he realized he’d killed the only person who could return him to his human form. His creator’s last words had been “Your coming together will be your undoing,” which didn’t promise much hope for a cure. He found himself a distant cave and made himself a lair. 

It turned out that besides harassing knights and villagers, there weren’t many things a dragon could do. His massive clawed hands kept him from enjoying any of the pursuits he remembered from his youth. A dragon’s eyes were excellent at spotting prey on the ground from the air, but he struggled to read the scrolls and books he stole on his increasingly infrequent raids. He took his anger out on the mountains around him, until even finding prey to eat became a chore. 

No one dared to come near him, human or animal. His days stretched endlessly into each other. He took longer and longer flights, soaring above the clouds, seeing the world even if he could never rejoin it. He returned to his cave for longer and longer naps. He couldn’t be sure how long it had been since he’d been changed. The people he watched scurried around, destroying one castle and building another, but nothing truly changed. 

He didn’t dream much anymore, which was the only reason that, when a knight in rusty armor approached his cave, weapon drawn, he realized it wasn’t a figment of his imagination, conjured to relieve his boredom. The knight’s approach woke him from his light doze, and he eyed them with interest as they struggled up the rocky terrain towards him. Not only was a full suit of armor a poor choice of gear for climbing, their armor was more dents than anything and looked to have been fitted for a much broader person than the one wearing it. 

Finally, the knight made it up to his ledge. They took a moment to catch their breath, then drew their sword, pointing it at him. “Dragon!” a muffled voice declared, still slightly winded.

Kylo blinked lazily in acknowledgement. This had all the makings of the most interesting day he’d had in a while, as long as the knight wasn’t too much of an idiot. He could always eat them, though the armor would be a pain. 

“I demand you return Princess Rose immediately,” the knight continued, brandishing their sword. 

Kylo huffed in amusement, a plume of smoke escaping his snout and blowing over the knight. He hadn’t expected this, but the knight had potential yet. Kylo spoke with his voice low, keeping his fire banked. “I’m sorry to disappoint you, Sir Knight, but there are no princesses here.”

The knight’s sword wavered, but they straightened it quickly. “Then tell me where you’ve hidden her!”

Kylo’s amusement grew. They were certainly determined. “I can’t say that I’ve ever seen your princess, Sir Knight.”

“Stop calling me that!” the knight demanded, taking a step towards him. 

Kylo tilted his head and eyed them, wondering if they realized they were close enough for him to lean his head out of his cave and snatch them up. “Sir Knight? Then what should I call you? You’ve addressed me only as ‘dragon’.”

The knight hesitated, then took another step. “Do dragons have names?”

Kylo snorted. “Do knights?”

The knight paused again, then, in a move that shocked Kylo more than anything they’d done yet, sheathed their sword. With both hands free, they reached up and removed their helmet, revealing the face of a young woman. Sweat and dirt streaked her pretty features, and damp tendrils of hair stuck to her face from where they’d escaped from the trio of buns at the back of her head. 

“I’m Rey,” she said, propping the helmet at her side. “Not sir, not lady. Just Rey.”

Kylo was speechless as he took her in. Not what he’d expected at all. The armor certainly wasn’t fitted to her, likely made for a man twice her size. It was a miracle she hadn’t fallen over herself trying to walk in it. He’d asked if she had a name half in jest, but he realized he hadn’t fully considered the person under the armor until she showed herself. 

“Well met, Rey,” he said with a slight nod, some old habits reasserting themselves. 

“And you?” she asked, waving a hand at him. He frowned in confusion. “Your name, Sir Dragon?”

“Kylo,” he rumbled. 

“Well met, Kylo,” she returned, nodding to him. “That’s a good name. It suits you much better than ‘great red beast’.”

Kylo laughed, accidentally dousing Rey in smoke again. He turned his head to the side, looking at her out of one large eye. “Is that what they call me these days?”

She shrugged. “Usually it involves more cursing.”

Another swirl of smoke escaped him. “I didn’t realize I was still spoken of. I haven’t flown among humans in…” He paused, realizing he’d lost track of how much time had passed since his last attack on a castle. 

Rey frowned at him. “We see you though, flying overhead. You were nearby on the day the princess disappeared.”

Kylo sighed. “I could not even tell you where that might be. You are the first human to visit my cave. There have been no princesses here.”

Rey’s frown deepened. “That can’t be possible. Princess Rose isn’t the first noble lady to disappear, and everyone knows that dragons steal princesses. They say you must have a whole harem up here by now.”

Kylo couldn’t help the bout of laughter that followed that. Rey scowled at him as his chest rumbled with amusement. “I am sorry to say I have fallen very behind on my collection of princesses,” he said, then laughed again. “What would I do with so many ladies anyway? Sounds like a good deal of trouble to me.”

“Well--” Her face flushed, and he suddenly pieced together what she’d implied and what most creatures would do with a harem. He coughed, nearly choking on his own smoke. 

“Nevermind that,” he said hastily, glad his scales didn’t show his embarrassment. He cleared his throat, a few sparks flying from his nostrils. Rey still wasn’t looking at him directly, cheeks pink, and he searched for something else to say. He noticed her secondhand armor again and started to wonder how this lone knight had made her way to his lair. 

“What about you?” he said abruptly, then shook his head. “I mean to say, how did you get sent on the journey out here to rescue your princess alone? Shouldn’t there be armies after me, if I’m stealing all these ladies?”

Her gaze returned to him, and her jaw set in a hard line. He suspected he wasn’t the first to question her about her journey. “The princess needed to be rescued. No one else was going to do it, so I went on my own.”

He hummed in thought. Apparently his presence inspired more fear than he’d realized. “And what makes this princess special? Why did you not come for any of the others that went missing?”

“I didn’t know them,” she protested. “And I didn’t know that no other kingdoms had tried to rescue them.”

His knight thought better of people than he did. He could tell she would have been at his door sooner had she known. “But you knew this one? Was she your lover? Your betrothed?”

It was Rey’s turn to laugh. “She has a betrothed, and a lover. I am neither, just her friend.”

“A friend who would face a dragon for her is no small thing,” Kylo said, watching her with intent. 

Rey flushed again. “I suppose. I couldn’t have done otherwise.”

“You could have,” Kylo disagreed. “I don’t see her betrothed here.”

At this, Rey scowled. “Beaumont is a coward,” she spat. “He never deserved her.” 

Kylo started to suspect what had happened to the princess. “And her lover?” he asked.

Rey’s scowl faded slightly, but not entirely. “I don’t know where Finn went,” she admitted. “He was a knight too, and I looked for him after Rose disappeared. I thought he might have left to find you before me, and maybe I would catch up to him on the road.”

Kylo held back his snort. “So the princess and her lover disappeared at the same time? Before her marriage to her betrothed?” He watched Rey’s face as the pieces clicked into place.

“Oh,” she said. Her knees bent and she collapsed to the ground in a clash of metal. “I’m an idiot,” she groaned, resting her head in her still gloved hands. 

“Not an idiot,” he said. Some instinct made him want to nuzzle her in comfort, but he wasn’t sure how she would take it. “I doubt an idiot would have made it here in one piece. Perhaps a little rash, but I can hardly call anyone to account for that. I would still be human if I hadn’t acted without thinking all those years ago.”

Rey’s head snapped up. “You were human?” she asked, eyes wide.

“Do the stories not mention that?” he replied, genuinely curious. She shook her head. “Interesting. Yes, I was, once.” The corner of his mouth twitched, the edge of a smile without humor. “More or less.”

Rey stared at him. “That sounds like quite the story,” she breathed. 

“I suppose so.” He gazed into the distance. After years of dwelling on what had happened, he’d avoided thinking of it for some time now. 

He shook himself, trying to cast off those thoughts. “It’s a long one, though, and you likely want to start your journey back to your kingdom. I suggest you look for your princess closer to home.”

“Oh.” Kylo wasn’t sure what to make of the odd note in her voice. “I suppose.” She looked back out over the landscape with him. Her shoulders slumped under her ill-fitting armor, and he felt suddenly, unreasonably guilty. He didn’t have much to offer a princess or a knight, but perhaps he could at least give her a place to rest before she set out again. 

“Though you did come all this way,” he started. Rey perked up, looking back at him with a spark of something bright in her eyes. “Would you like to see my hoard? No princesses, but I think I have a few swords. And if you can read, I have a number of books--”

“Yes!” Rey said before he could finish. “I can read. And I would love to see them.”

“Well then,” With a grunt of effort, Kylo pushed himself up and stretched. When he looked back at Rey, she was watching him wide-eyed. He cocked his head at her. “Shall we?”

She scrambled to her feet with another burst of clanking. He winced, wondering if he could convince her to put the armor aside for the night. “Yes, please,” she said.

He nodded, his chest filling with a strange warmth. He turned around, careful to keep his tail from hitting her, then led her into his lair. 

**Author's Note:**

> Like yesterday's, I also have a plan for an E-rated follow up to this, but no promises on a timeline.
> 
> Comments always appreciated! 
> 
> You can also find me on [pillowfort as thelastjedi](https://www.pillowfort.social/posts/906830), [tumblr as thewayofthetrashcompactor](https://thewayofthetrashcompactor.tumblr.com/post/188963992628/read-on-ao3-finally-posted-the-last-chapter-of-my), and [twitter as briartrash](https://twitter.com/briartrash/status/1193685084697743360?s=20)


End file.
